Contents

Preface
Guide to Pronunciation
The Alphabet
Greetings and Salutations
I      Elements of a Sentence
1 Nouns, Articles, and Adjectives
The Gender of Nouns and the Definite Article
Singular Nouns
Plural Nouns
The Indefinite Article
Singular Indefinite Articles
Plural Indefinite Articles
Adjectives
Singular Form of Adjectives
Plural Form of Adjectives
2 Estar, Ser, and Subject Pronouns
Subject Pronouns
Estar (to be)
Ser (to be)
Reading Comprehension   La casa
3 Hay, Interrogative Words, Days, and Months
Hay
Interrogative Words
Prepositions
Days of the Week, Months, and Seasons
Reading Comprehension   Un pueblo colonial
Reading Comprehension   El cine
4 Numbers, Dates, and Time
Cardinal Numbers
Ordinal Numbers
The Date
Telling Time
Reading Comprehension   El restaurante
Reading Comprehension   El oficio de la casa
5 Regular Verbs
Uses of the Present Tense
-Ar Verbs
-Er Verbs
-Ir Verbs
-Ar and -er Verbs with More than One Meaning
Reading Comprehension Una escuela en México
6 Irregular Verbs
-Ar Verbs
-Er Verbs
-Ir Verbs
Reading Comprehension   El tren
7 Ir and the Future
Ir (to go)
The Future with the Verb ir
Idioms
Idioms with the Verb tener
Other Idioms
Useful Words: que and para
The Relative Pronoun que
The Conjunction que
The Preposition para
Key Vocabulary
Las partes del cuerpo (Parts of the Body)
La familia
Time Expressions with hacer
Reading Comprehension   La cita
8 Adjectives and Adverbs
Possessive Adjectives
Demonstrative Adjectives
Neuter Demonstrative Pronouns
Adjectives of Nationality
Adjectives That Precede a Noun
Comparative Adjectives
Superlative Adjectives
Irregular Comparatives and Superlatives
Comparing Nouns
Comparing Verbs
Adverbs
Adverbs That Do Not Take the Suffix -mente
Reading Comprehension   La fiesta
9 Negatives and Prepositions
Negatives
Prepositions
Prepositions Followed by Verbs or Nouns
Prepositions Followed by Nouns or Pronouns
Pronouns That Follow Prepositions
The Preposition por
Por and para Compared
Reading Comprehension   El circo
Key Vocabulary
Nature
Weather
Reading Comprehension   El trabajo
II     Objects, Reflexive Verbs, and the Present Subjunctive
10  The Indirect Object
Gustar and the Indirect Object
Me gusta and me gustan
Te gusta and te gustan
Le gusta and le gustan
Nos gusta and nos gustan
Les gusta and les gustan
Verbs Like gustar
The Indirect Object Pronoun
Position of the Indirect Object Pronoun
Reading Comprehension   Ir de compras
Reading Comprehension   El viaje
11  The Direct Object
The Personal a and the Direct Object
Transitive Verbs
The Direct Object Pronoun
Position of the Direct Object Pronoun
The Direct Object Pronoun as a Person
The Direct Object Pronoun as a Thing
Reading Comprehension   La bienvenida
12  Reflexive Verbs
The Reflexive Pronouns
Some Frequently Used Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive Verbs Whose English Translations Do Not Necessarily Include Oneself
Position of the Reflexive Pronoun
Reflexive Verbs with Parts of the Body and Clothing
Reflexive Verbs That Express Emotion
Reflexive Verbs That Express Movement
Reflexive Verbs That Express “To Become”
Most Frequently Used Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive Verbs with Reciprocal Meanings
Se and Impersonal Expressions
Reading Comprehension   El encuentro
13  The Present Subjunctive
Formation of the Present Subjunctive
-Ar Verbs
-Er and -ir Verbs
Irregular Verbs
Verbs with Orthographic Changes
Uses of the Present Subjunctive
After Certain Impersonal Expressions
After Certain Verbs
After Certain Conjunctions
After cuando
In Certain Dependent Adjective Clauses
After the Expressions por más que and por mucho que
After ojalá
After acaso, quizás, and tal vez
After aunque
After Compounds of -quiera
After como
Reading Comprehension   La despedida
III   Preterit Tense, Imperfect Tense, and Double Object Pronouns
14  The Preterit Tense
Formation of the Preterit
Regular -ar Verbs
Regular -er and -ir Verbs
Uses of the Preterit
To Express an Action Completed in the Past
To Express a Series of Completed Actions in the Past
To Express a Condition That Is No Longer in Effect
Irregular Verbs
-Ir Verbs with Stem Changes in the Third Person
Verbs with Orthographic Changes
-Ar Verbs
-Er and -ir Verbs
Verbs with Special Meanings in the Preterit
Reading Comprehension   En la corte (primera escena)
15  The Imperfect Tense
Formation of the Imperfect
Regular -ar Verbs
Regular -er and -ir Verbs
Irregular Verbs
Uses of the Imperfect
To “Set the Stage” in the Past; to Express a Narration, Situation, or Background
To Express Habitual, Customary, or Repeated Actions in the Past
To Express Continuous Actions in the Past
To Express a Description in the Past
To Express Point of Origin in the Past
To Express Time in the Past
To Express One’s Age in the Past
Preterit and Imperfect Compared
Querer, poder, saber
Double Object Pronouns
Indirect Object Pronoun with Direct Object Pronoun
Reflexive Pronoun with Direct Object Pronoun
Se Plus the Indirect Object Pronoun and Unplanned Occurrences
Reading Comprehension   El juicio (segunda escena)
   Aswer Key
   Index